What a relief! I went into Half-Blood Prince with some trepidation. Order of the Phoenix was simply one of the most dreadful movies I've seen in theaters in recent years. I didn't know if I should be laying the blame on David Yates or Michael Goldenberg. Well, this movie gives me the answer: It's Goldenberg's fault. The screenplay for Phoenix excised all the things that made Phoenix palatable.

For the newest installment, Steve Klove returns. Like all adaptations, you can't fit in everything you can from the book into a film. But Klove retains, improbably, so much of the heart of the characters from the book that the movie could almost work as a stand-alone romantic comedy. My only complaint is that the ending is cut short and the

death of Dumbledore

loses some of the impact. I don't think an extra 5 or 7 minutes there would've killed the film.

Overall, this is the strongest installment of the series and a great way to go into the final two films. Of the people I saw it with it, all but one loved it (she was a first time Potter viewer). Highly recommended to fans!

RocShemp

07-14-09, 12:49 AM

Hmm. I dunno how to feel about that review. I never read the books but Order of the Phoenix was my second favorite movie. Prisoner of Azkabhan is my favorite thus far. The one I hated the most was Goblet Of Fire. It was just so disjointed.

How does Half-Blood Prince compare to Prisoner of Azkabhan?

Solid Snake

07-14-09, 12:59 AM

I've never seen any of the others but Priosoner of Azkabhan was damn good...Cuaron was on a role with that one.

chris_sc77

07-14-09, 01:07 AM

I liked films 1,3, and 5.
Films 2 and 4 sucked.

I swore i'd never see another Potter in theaters after 4 but 5 was very good and I may change my mind after seeing the good reviews for this one.

RocShemp

07-14-09, 02:20 AM

I wouldn't say Chamber of Secrets sucked but it was definitely not on par with Prisoner of Azkabhan or Order of the Phoenix.

I'd rate them from best to worst:

Prisoner of Azkabhan
Order of the Phoenix
Philosopher's Stone
Chamber of Secrets
Goblet of Fire

Supermallet

07-14-09, 03:09 AM

Yeah, that would be my ranking as well. Chamber of Secrets isn't bad so much as it is pointless, but so is the book, so that's not the movie's fault. Goblet of Fire was just poorly made.

Yeah, that would be my ranking as well. Chamber of Secrets isn't bad so much as it is pointless, but so is the book, so that's not the movie's fault. Goblet of Fire was just poorly made.

"Chamber of Secrets" was always my least favorite, but they helped redeem it in the end by making its climax retroactively important.

RobLutter

07-14-09, 03:08 PM

Chamber of Secrets is a 1.5 hour plot in a 3 hour movie. :) That film needed a better director and a shorter runtime.

Goblet of Fire wasn't terrible but it should have been better. Maybe because it's a lot of peoples' favorite book of the series... it was impossible to measure up.

I actually thought Order of the Phoenix was one of the best of the series. Not sure why people don't like that one.

As I've told my friends though... the winner hands down is Prisoner of Azkaban. Instead of making the book into an exact replica on-screen that film made a MOVIE. Great cinematography, design, and pacing... and Cuaron knew exactly what was needed in the plot and what could go to the wayside and not hurt the film. It's TIGHT.

pinata242

07-14-09, 03:16 PM

Great reviews so far in here and from Brian and Jamie. I'm looking forward to it. Taking my older daughter to the 9:30am tomorrow (early bird special :up:).

Supermallet

07-14-09, 03:45 PM

"Chamber of Secrets" was always my least favorite, but they helped redeem it in the end by making its climax retroactively important.

ALthough you're review had already swayed me, this charming picture you included sealed the deal:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/images/reviews/166/1247539034_3.jpg

:D:up:

fumanstan

07-14-09, 05:35 PM

I caught it this morning and I'm not sure if it was because I was tired from not getting much sleep, but I found it fairly boring. I haven't read the book since it's release, so I don't really have that to compare to but i'd say about 90% of the movie is just silly relationships going back and forth, leaving a lot to be desired. The Half-Blood Prince subplot felt like it was barely touched, and the ending seemed rushed once Harry and Dumbledore seek out the Horcrux up until the end. Quidditch seemed like it was injected just to add a little bit of action in the middle of the movie but didn't serve that much more of a purpose.

I did think they did a good job with Draco and Snape, but the other characters, like Dumbledore, Ron, and Hermonie all felt on the weak end.

Also, Tonks didn't look as cute as she did in the last movie :sad:

Arthur Dent

07-14-09, 05:41 PM

Also, Tonks didn't look as cute as she did in the last movie :sad:
Well, that's not good. :(

The Bus

07-14-09, 06:13 PM

She definitely did not. I thought it was just James Phelps in a wig at one point. :lol:

The Bus

07-14-09, 06:14 PM

But it's made up by the fact that Bonnie Wright is kind of hot.

(Yes, she's 18).

the big train

07-14-09, 06:23 PM

Also, Tonks didn't look as cute as she did in the last movie :sad:

She's not supposed to.

outcastja

07-14-09, 06:51 PM

This opening is going to be huge, don't know if it can break Transformers Wednesday opening record but I think it will have a good shot. Here in Socal there are a lot of theaters that have 5+ midnight showings which are all sold out.

NitroJMS

07-14-09, 07:05 PM

This opening is going to be huge, don't know if it can break Transformers Wednesday opening record but I think it will have a good shot. Here in Socal there are a lot of theaters that have 5+ midnight showings which are all sold out.

I counted about 20 sold out midnight shows here in Pittsburgh. However, the other recent ones were always front loaded so who knows if this will have legs.

pinata242

07-14-09, 07:12 PM

I'll say the same thing I said to a friend-of-a-friend on Facebook:

TF2 made $300M in 14 days. No HP has made $300M since SS.

HP won't have the weekend TF2 had. My local IMAX showed TF2 every 3 hours for 72 hours straight. They did that because Dallas was doing it and they hate each other. HP has nothing like that.

fumanstan

07-14-09, 07:22 PM

She's not supposed to.

It doesn't make it suck any less! But no, wasn't there some stuff in the book about how the return of the Death Eaters had been taking it's toll on the Order?

Still, the colorful hair was gone and she had the hair cut of a dude. She was hardly recognizable, but at least there was a brief line about her relationship with Lupin.

Goldberg74

07-14-09, 08:31 PM

The lone decenter at RT is blaming the lag time inbetween the books and the movie and not the merits of the movie itself. :down:

Manohla Dargis - New York Times

"The lag time between the final books and the movies has drained much of the urgency from this screen adaptation, which, far more than any of the previous films, feels like an afterthought."

I'm just pissed that it wasn't released back in Nov '08.

... but I will be seeing it in the next few days. :D:up:

Anubis2005X

07-15-09, 03:53 AM

Saw it tonight, loved it. I would've liked to have seen Snape actually lose it at the end like i feel he did in the book, but I'm just being ultra picky. Can't wait to see the next one!

I thought it was the best one since Azkaban. My only complaint was the ending which I thought was a little rushed and different from the book if I remember correctly.

Drop

07-15-09, 10:20 AM

It's the third best film of the series, behind Azkaban and Phoenix.

I agree. It was good, and the cast all had their best performances. I really liked Gambon as Dumbledore in the film. He really proved how well cast he was for the role. The romance stuff was really well done, in spite of not finding Ginny the least bit attractive. And it was easily the funniest film.

But I still find PoA to just have the best plot and being so well directed. OotP was just more exciting, which really surprised me. HBP should've had more energy, but it didn't, even with the exciting last act. I did not find the ending rushed, but I would've liked to see some more things from the book.

Quake1028

07-15-09, 10:42 AM

I also really love Order, not sure what Bus is going on about there. I would also rank them:

Azkaban
Order
Sorcerer's
Goblet
Chamber

Going to see the new film on Friday night. Cannot wait.

outcastja

07-15-09, 11:30 AM

Deadlinehollywood is reporting it broke the midnight showing record with 20 million.

You know it's funny, we recently rewatched Order of the Phoenix. I really enjoyed when I first saw and felt it was easily the best of the Potter films, simply because it took the time and space to first and foremost *tell a story*. The look, feel, acting, and storytelling of that film was much better than of the others in the series.

And it was from my LEAST favorite Potter book!

My second favorite movie, CHAMBER OF SECRETS, is my second least favorite book as well. Funny how that works.

I'd rank the films as follows, so far:

Order of the Phoenix
Chamber of Secrets
Goblet of Fire
Prisoner of Azkaban
Sorcerer's Stone

I think PoA is a bit overrated by fanboys. Yeah, Cuaron gave the series a strong kick in the pants to open up a bit, but it still had pacing/editing problems that disrupted the flow of the storytelling. I loved how it looked, how human the characters really felt for the first time, and it benefitted from having the quickest, leanest plot of the HP stories. But not my favorite of the films.

You know it's funny, we recently rewatched Order of the Phoenix. I really enjoyed when I first saw and felt it was easily the best of the Potter films, simply because it took the time and space to first and foremost *tell a story*. The look, feel, acting, and storytelling of that film was much better than of the others in the series.

And it was from my LEAST favorite Potter book!

My second favorite movie, CHAMBER OF SECRETS, is my second least favorite book as well. Funny how that works.

I think PoA is a bit overrated by fanboys. Yeah, Cuaron gave the series a strong kick in the pants to open up a bit, but it still had pacing/editing problems that disrupted the flow of the storytelling. I loved how it looked, how human the characters really felt for the first time, and it benefitted from having the quickest, leanest plot of the HP stories. But not my favorite of the films.

You know, I agree with a lot of this, although my rankings might be a bit different. POA had a lot going for it, but I didn't agree with all of Cuaron's choices. He cut a few things that wouldn't have ruined the flow of the story but would have made the ending work a bit better, yet wasted screen time with his own silly whimsies (like the Jamaican shrunken heads and the monster book battle) that didn't add anything to the story.

Chamber of Secrets is also my 2nd least favorite book, but one I think was made more effective in the adaptation. The climactic end battle actually became exciting on the screen, where in the novel it came of as flat.

Order of the Phoenix also improved immensely in the adaptation, cutting out quite a bit of Rowling's overkill. Still, I was disappointing with the way Sirius' death was handled in the film... far too anticlimactic.

The Bus

07-15-09, 01:50 PM

I also really love Order, not sure what Bus is going on about there.

What I wrote in the Phoenix review.

I'm afraid detractors of the film are going to have to accept that the film simply plays well to those who have read the book, but plays poorly to those haven't read the book.

No, the film is terrible. I haven't been as disappointed in an adaptation since Jurassic Park. This is one of my least favorite of the books of the franchise but upon re-reading it, I actually liked it. But my word, the movie is disastrous. I felt like I fell asleep during parts and suddenly woke up and had missed a few scenes.

I would be livid if I hadn't read the book. Nothing makes sense. Honestly, this movie looks like it was made from the pasted-together cut-scenes of the video game adaptation.

I would be up for an hour if I enumerated what was wrong with this movie, but here goes:
<ul>
<li> Cho is the traitor?
<li> Kreacher is an afterthought? No Dobby?
<li> No Quidditch?
<li> Grawp's story completely mangled
<li> No "Weasley is Our King"... How will they explain Ron's sudden membership in the Quidditch team?
<li> The prophecy gets explained by the crystal ball?
<li> People believe Harry because of The Daily Prophet?
<li> No hospital scene?
<li> The Dementors now look totally different? (iirc)
</ul>

I thought some parts were very well done: specifically, the costume work on Dudley and his friends, Umbridge was very well done even if her character was written differently. But these are minor, minor pluses.

Overall, one of the worst movies I've seen this year. I will not be seeing this in IMAX.

My problem, very clearly, was with the adaptation. I read the book fresh after I saw the movie. Honestly, now, I don't even know what half of my complaints are about.

But the blame is clearly on the screenwriter. He did Peter Pan (2003). The new (old) one did Wonder Boys. And all of the past films were at least enjoyable.

Kal-El

07-15-09, 01:53 PM

Seeing this with the wife tonight. But in other related news (from my E! news twitter feed):

The kid beat Batman.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince scored a king-size $22.2 million from midnight screenings this morning, Warner Bros. reported. The total bests the old record, held by none other than The Dark Knight, by nearly $4 million.

To quote an email from the studio: "Wow."

As late as yesterday afternoon, with reports of sold-out screenings mounting, Warner Bros. was playing it cool. "It's hard to really tell where things are going," exec Dan Fellman told E! News.

It's not so hard to tell anymore.

Solid Snake

07-15-09, 02:00 PM

It's good to be WB for sure. Can't see this beating TDK though....maybe close.

The Bus

07-15-09, 02:01 PM

And to think they moved this for fiscal reasons. :lol:

pinata242

07-15-09, 02:35 PM

I enjoyed this movie. I thought it was tight and well-paced, even if the ending was a little rushed. The 2.5 hours just flew by.

I only wish that Harry had been immobilized by Dumbledore as in the book, it would have been more believable to his character. Although it does a decent job of showing how he's growing and wising up.

Also, I just loved how the whole Half-Blood Prince mystery and reveal was completely tacked on because the title necessitated it :lol:

mdc3000

07-15-09, 02:49 PM

^That's my main problem with the movie - we get NONE of the scenes that explain the significance of the Half-Blood Prince and the finale didn't carry enough weight and felt like the most streamlined version possible... the first 2 hours does such a good job with the pacing, taking time for the little moments that when the major shit all happens in 30 minutes, I felt a little underwhelmed... and like I said, there are a lot of little things in the book that give the characters more depth (especially Snape) but overall I really liked it a lot.

David Yates finally found his visual style and the movie looked fantastic with lots of really cool shots and the way things are framed being quite exceptional. The humour and love story elements work really well too. I enjoyed more than I disliked and I'm sure if I hadn't read the books, I'd put it at the top of the 'best in series' list, but since I have read the books I'd say the order is more like: Azkaban, Half-Blood Prince, Goblet, Stone, Order, Chamber.

pinata242

07-15-09, 02:52 PM

I'm also glad that there wasn't a giant Hogwarts battle like in the book. That never felt right to me anyway and it would have been highly unbelievable seeing it all go down.

I love the quick in & out assassination and extraction of Snape and Malfoy.

Though I could have used any of Greyback's story and Lupin's connection.

cartman

07-15-09, 03:35 PM

Also, Tonks didn't look as cute as she did in the last movie :sad:

She wasn't supposed to. There was a huge plotline cut out where she and Lupin were having relationship troubles and that had an effect on her looks (she had "plain" brown hair since her mood wasn't good), as well as troubles within the Order.

I was expecting much more from this movie, but it was entertaining still.

asianxcore

07-15-09, 04:12 PM

Caught a Midnight showing of this last night.

Really enjoyed the film. I actually liked the change in opening, even though parts of it are barely mentioned in the book. I liked and didn't like the changes with the end of the film, so let's hope I get all that back in the Deathly Hallows films.

Also for anyone who read the book, did anyone get a little sad seeing:

Fenrir and Bellatrix lighting the Burrow on fire?

Looking forward to the next two films. About halfway through reading Deathly Hallows for the first time, so I have to speed that up :)

Supermallet

07-15-09, 04:25 PM

David Yates finally found his visual style and the movie looked fantastic with lots of really cool shots and the way things are framed being quite exceptional.

I agree that there are a lot of cool shots (almost anything involving a staircase is interesting), but I'm not a huge fan of Yates' decision to drain a significant amount of color and soften the image so it looks like the actors are almost blending into the backgrounds. It's a really odd decision and I guess it's meant to reflect how the world itself has gotten darker since Voldemort's return, but it can get really distracting. He did the same thing on Order of the Phoenix.

Mr.Briggs

07-15-09, 04:38 PM

I loved it. Best in the series to me. How can a movie not be great when Armond White has officially certified it rotten. I can't believe that going into today it had 40 positive & 1 negative & today 100 more reviews have been added and the new total is 126 positive 15 negative (down from 98% yesterday to 89%).

fumanstan

07-15-09, 05:19 PM

She wasn't supposed to. There was a huge plotline cut out where she and Lupin were having relationship troubles and that had an effect on her looks (she had "plain" brown hair since her mood wasn't good), as well as troubles within the Order.

I was expecting much more from this movie, but it was entertaining still.

Yeah, thats what I thought and commented on it earlier. :)

bluetoast

07-16-09, 12:33 AM

I liked this one better than the last one that's for sure, but I'm still disapointed that this director get a crack at FOUR movies. Wish someone else could have gotten a shot. Or that Cuaron could have come back! But one thing:

Was it just me, or did they never mention Lavender's name AT ALL? The only time they came close was when she herself wrote out the "L" on the window. Now I know time is short, and exposition is one thing but come on, a character's name?!

Supermallet

07-16-09, 01:47 AM

They mention her name a few times, I believe.

GenPion

07-16-09, 03:26 AM

Well, guys, I thought it was a terrible adaptation of the book. What a dreadfully disappointing film. Everything I loved about the novel seemed to be missing or was horribly condensed in this film. David Yates did a good job directing, generally speaking, but even then it didn't feel like a Harry Potter film should. The script felt cobbled together as well - it was poorly constructed to be sure. Scenes that seemed as though they should have been there were not - and I think even people who haven't read the books may feel that way. The cinematography and set designs were great but too dark for this story. In the novel half of the book showed the series at it's most serious and the other half showed it at it's most light-hearted. This movie fails to capture that spirit at all as there is a constant dread build around every scene. This film also failed to create a truly effective ending. Dumbledore's death was hardly worth feeling sad about as presented in this film as it had none of the emotional resonance as it should have. The scene with Dumbledore trying to destroy the horcrux was also ruined by the poor decision by the screenwriter to not follow this passage of the book as closely as possible for a film. Voldemort's backstory was greatly dimished, lowering the impact of the novel all around. Harry and Ginny were essentially boyfriend/girlfriend in the book - and even Ron knows. I guess the film-makers didn't think this was necessary for this point in time. They were wrong.

Last, but most certainly not least, the score was absolutely dreadful. I have never missed John Williams involvement in the franchise more than I do tonight.

There was a lot more wrong with this movie but I do not even want to think about it right now. I am that disappointing by it. This should have been the best in the film series, and one of the best films of all time. Period. J.K. Rowling's novel really was that amazing.

Matto1020

07-16-09, 03:34 AM

I liked this one better than the last one that's for sure, but I'm still disapointed that this director get a crack at FOUR movies. Wish someone else could have gotten a shot. Or that Cuaron could have come back! But one thing:

Was it just me, or did they never mention Lavender's name AT ALL? The only time they came close was when she herself wrote out the "L" on the window. Now I know time is short, and exposition is one thing but come on, a character's name?!

I am on the complete opposite side.

I prefer Yates to be able to tackle the last four movies instead of having four different directors. This allows him to set up things for his future flicks, as well as giving these last four movies a continuous style. HP3 feels different than HP1 or HP2, which feels different from HP4, which is feels different from HP5. Last thing I want is to be subjected to yet another persons take on Harry Potter.

Imagine each of the Lord of the Rings movies being directed by someone different... it would definitely not be as good as one director taking the helm. And as far as Curon his concerned... yes it was wonderful he took this franchise from the kiddy flicks to something a little more respectable, but he was no without his faults.

I think style wise, him and Yates are on par so far. HBP is easily my favorite of the Potter books and now the Potter movies. And it pleases me to know that Yates will be handling the last two installments as well!

Kal-El

07-16-09, 05:00 AM

Abso-bloomin'-lutely loved it. Despite all the changes they made, I felt that they kept the more important stuff and dialogue spot on. Favorite book, and now favorite movie.

Pharoh

07-16-09, 10:02 AM

Well, guys, I thought it was a terrible adaptation of the book. What a dreadfully disappointing film. Everything I loved about the novel seemed to be missing or was horribly condensed in this film. David Yates did a good job directing, generally speaking, but even then it didn't feel like a Harry Potter film should. The script felt cobbled together as well - it was poorly constructed to be sure. Scenes that seemed as though they should have been there were not - and I think even people who haven't read the books may feel that way. The cinematography and set designs were great but too dark for this story. In the novel half of the book showed the series at it's most serious and the other half showed it at it's most light-hearted. This movie fails to capture that spirit at all as there is a constant dread build around every scene. This film also failed to create a truly effective ending. Dumbledore's death was hardly worth feeling sad about as presented in this film as it had none of the emotional resonance as it should have. The scene with Dumbledore trying to destroy the horcrux was also ruined by the poor decision by the screenwriter to not follow this passage of the book as closely as possible for a film. Voldemort's backstory was greatly dimished, lowering the impact of the novel all around. Harry and Ginny were essentially boyfriend/girlfriend in the book - and even Ron knows. I guess the film-makers didn't think this was necessary for this point in time. They were wrong.

Last, but most certainly not least, the score was absolutely dreadful. I have never missed John Williams involvement in the franchise more than I do tonight.

There was a lot more wrong with this movie but I do not even want to think about it right now. I am that disappointing by it. This should have been the best in the film series, and one of the best films of all time. Period. J.K. Rowling's novel really was that amazing.

I read the books when my sons did so I could discuss them and found them to be very good stories, so I don't necessarily agree with with the amazing aspect of this particular book, however I do agree with the overall assessment of the movie. While it is a good movie, it really does a disservice to the book.

My two biggest complaints center around the portrayal of Harry and Dumbledore, which has to me been a series long problem. For five movies we have seen the movie character of Harry be built up to the chosen one, somebody actually capable of facing Voldemort. This was often in contrast to the books, particularly the early ones, where luck and circumstance were often the biggest contributor. I know they touch upon this in the films, but Harry was clearly a stronger more confident person in the movies than the book. Finally in the HBP book, we start to see a more confident and stronger Harry, one where readers can finally believe he has a true chance against the forces against him, albeit still requiring much assistance. Harry had truly grown into his life and role in it.

So why in the world does this movie strip all of that, neutering and greatly weakening him? He was essentially impotent in this movie, and it lessened my enjoyment immensely. A few small examples:

the drinking of the felix potion didn't have to be about a drugged up giddy school boy Harry. Yes, the potion makes him 'lucky', but wasn't really meant to be a more insightful, confident, and prescient Harry? And like many others, I wished the tantamount scene on top of the tower to have been longer, but the thing that really bothered me was Harry not being petrified. The book Harry did everything he could to get out of the effects of the spell to help Dumbledore, and when the spell ended, when Dumbledore died, he immediately went into action. Quite different from the film. I understand the decision since they decided to not film the large battle that takes place after the death of Dumbledore, but that was a stupid decision that greatly lessened my view of the movie Harry, members of the Order, the teachers of Hogwarts, and the students. Lastly, when Harry was chasing the death eaters, he was completely ineffectual. That is not how he should have been portrayed.

I don't think some of these would have been difficult to change, difficult to more properly portray Harry and his allies as the people ready to take on the task of facing the evils that await them. As the movies stand, I have zero confidence or belief that they can.

As for Dumbledore, I have always felt that the films do a very poor job of depicting him as strong as powerful as he was in the books. I don't think he comes across as the greatest wizard in the world, the one that all others including death eaters and voldemort are fearful of. I won't belabor this, but present two small changes from the current film:

when they finally produce the Slughorn memory the film Dumbledore seems completely surprised by the revelation. The book reality is of course that he already knew, had already figured almost all of it out, and only needed confirmation and perhaps needed to know how many horcruxes there were. It was an easy opportunity to showcase the brilliance and power of Dumbledore. Why so fundamentally change the character? And the scene on top of the tower I thought did injustice to his character as well.

Obviously expectations play a huge part in assessments, and my expectations were far from met. The drastic changes to the characters lessened significantly my view of the film. Perhaps though I am wrong in my views of the books, perhaps others disagree with my take on the film. Given my faulty memory and the time passed since I read the books it is entirely possible that I am out to lunch.
:shrug:

SleepyW

07-16-09, 10:08 AM

Without reading anyone else's reviews yet, here's mine (I'm waiting to be thrashed by the HP fanboys and girls):

I haven’t read the book, however, I’d heard some leakings of events after the book was released. Despite that, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was a long, predictable Lifetime Movie Network sleeper with most of the focus on the love stories. When the silly Quidditch match is the majority of the action for the entire sitting, you could be in for a bit of a nap.

Granted, the book is long and full of detail that can’t possible fit into a single film, but that is likely why, despite the 153-minute run-time, the scenes felt rushed and uneventful. The special effects were on pace with its predecessors – in that I mean they look like they were done 4-5 years ago.

Half-Blood Prince felt like nothing more than a long-winded, anti-climactic, somewhat scatter-brained set-up for the final movie(s). It is also the proud owner of what is likely to be the most unemotional death of a main character (especially considering one that’s been in 5 movies prior) in any A-list movie I’ve ever witnessed.

I give this movie a C+ only for the fact that it was necessary to know how events will unfold in the final chapter. But the content and mood of this installment would have been much better suited as a made-for-TV. If you’re not a hard core Potter addict, wait and rent the DVD.

BCorbett

07-16-09, 10:16 AM

I was very, very disappointed in this film. There was just so much changed/left out that in my opinion is crucial to the story and to the conclusion that it left an awful lot to be desired.

We learned almost nothing of Voldemort's horcruxes, unlike the book in which Dumbledore has put together all of that information except for the last 3 horcruxes. I thought the exclusion of several of the memories from the book (Voldemort's mother/father, Voldemort's employment at Borgin and Burke's, his return to Hogwart's) left out many key elements to understanding Voldemort and exactly what lies in store for Harry. Not having Harry frozen at the point of Dumbledore's death, the "flight of the prince" being so short and undramatic...I could go on and on.

The film was entertaining and all that, but I left the theater feeling very unfulfilled and disappointed.

The Bus

07-16-09, 11:11 AM

Reading these other reviews, it seems like I may have liked the film precisely because I had last read the book over a year ago (or more). And I didn't like the last film because I saw it right after I read the book.

Simple solution: don't see the film right after you've read the book.

bluetoast

07-16-09, 11:39 AM

I am on the complete opposite side.

I prefer Yates to be able to tackle the last four movies instead of having four different directors. This allows him to set up things for his future flicks, as well as giving these last four movies a continuous style. HP3 feels different than HP1 or HP2, which feels different from HP4, which is feels different from HP5. Last thing I want is to be subjected to yet another persons take on Harry Potter.

Imagine each of the Lord of the Rings movies being directed by someone different... it would definitely not be as good as one director taking the helm. And as far as Curon his concerned... yes it was wonderful he took this franchise from the kiddy flicks to something a little more respectable, but he was no without his faults.

I think style wise, him and Yates are on par so far. HBP is easily my favorite of the Potter books and now the Potter movies. And it pleases me to know that Yates will be handling the last two installments as well!

I'm not saying 4 movies, 4 directors. It could just as easily have been 2 movies 2 directors, keeping Yates on as is, then a new person for the last two. It's not like the series is jarringly different with each new director in any case (to the point of being unwatchable), especially with Kloves on the script for the most part. The fact that the movies felt different is not necessarily a bad thing. Plus a lot of the time, even after the director has left the series, they have an influence on the next movie or so. Columbus stayed on as producer for Azkaban, and it was Cuaron who suggested that Goblet remain as one movie instead of being split.

I was mainly disappointed with the last movie and as such was like "Oh brother" when it was announced that this "new guy" would be doing the entire rest of the series. But after this movie, things appear to be a bit better.

NitroJMS

07-16-09, 12:15 PM

I'm also glad that there wasn't a giant Hogwarts battle like in the book. That never felt right to me anyway and it would have been highly unbelievable seeing it all go down.

I love the quick in & out assassination and extraction of Snape and Malfoy.

See, that's a big problem now with the Malfoy's story though. What was the point to the vanishing chest, if the Death Eaters weren't going to raise hell at Hogwarts? They just show up and do nothing. Malfoy and Snape could have carried out the plot without the chest, and still likely have made it out of there since they all kinda just run out with zero resistance other than Harry.

orangecrush

07-16-09, 12:45 PM

But it's made up by the fact that Bonnie Wright is kind of hot.

(Yes, she's 18).I haven't really noticed her in prior movies, but after reading your post, I couldn't keep my eyes off of Bonnie in this movie.

I really liked the film. I too think that the end was more abrupt than I would have prefered and there was a little too much teen romance. But overall, I was very satisfied with it. I even scence that wasn't in the book.

Drop

07-16-09, 12:46 PM

Well it's a security issue isn't? Hogwarts was supposed to be safe, and it was just proven unsafe. In many ways that's worse than any damage they did do (and they did do some damage in the film).

GenPion

07-16-09, 12:49 PM

See, that's a big problem now with the Malfoy's story though. What was the point to the vanishing chest, if the Death Eaters weren't going to raise hell at Hogwarts? They just show up and do nothing. Malfoy and Snape could have carried out the plot without the chest, and still likely have made it out of there since they all kinda just run out with zero resistance other than Harry.

Your spot on here. It was laughably bad how this was portrayed in the film. It was nothing like it could have been based on the book. Where were all the death eaters fighting everyone at Hogwarts with total chaos ensuing for all? This was yet another major missed opportunity.

Kal-El

07-16-09, 12:57 PM

See, that's a big problem now with the Malfoy's story though. What was the point to the vanishing chest, if the Death Eaters weren't going to raise hell at Hogwarts? They just show up and do nothing. Malfoy and Snape could have carried out the plot without the chest, and still likely have made it out of there since they all kinda just run out with zero resistance other than Harry.

I see your point there, but I guess I'll chalk that up to the fact that Bellatrix and the others never fully trusted Snape and thought that Malfoy could never really pull off the task. So they were there as the back-up to the back-up. If Snape didn't do it and died as a result due to the Unbreakable Vow, then they could've all ganged up on Dumbledore.

orangecrush

07-16-09, 12:57 PM

As for Dumbledore, I have always felt that the films do a very poor job of depicting him as strong as powerful as he was in the books. I don't think he comes across as the greatest wizard in the world, the one that all others including death eaters and voldemort are fearful of. I won't belabor this, but present two small changes from the current film:

when they finally produce the Slughorn memory the film Dumbledore seems completely surprised by the revelation. The book reality is of course that he already knew, had already figured almost all of it out, and only needed confirmation and perhaps needed to know how many horcruxes there were. It was an easy opportunity to showcase the brilliance and power of Dumbledore. Why so fundamentally change the character? And the scene on top of the tower I thought did injustice to his character as well. I would agree with you in the first 4 movies. Though, I think the duel in film 5 and the cave scence in this film did a lot to convey the power of Dumbledore. I suspect that we will see a lot from Snapes memory in the final film that will convey just how smart Dumbledore was. I am expecting a lot more to be included because they choose to do 2 movies.

orangecrush

07-16-09, 12:59 PM

Your spot on here. It was laughably bad how this was portrayed in the film. It was nothing like it could have been based on the book. Where were all the death eaters fighting everyone at Hogwarts with total chaos ensuing for all? This was yet another major missed opportunity.I think that the film makers choose to not show that so that the final battle has more of an impact. I could be wrong though.

Merkin Muffley

07-16-09, 01:44 PM

I think that the film makers choose to not show that so that the final battle has more of an impact. I could be wrong though.

I agree...it might seem repetitive. At first I was a little disappointed they left it out. But after thinking about it, I applaud the filmmakers for practicing a little restraint.

Anubis2005X

07-16-09, 02:00 PM

I agree...it might seem repetitive. At first I was a little disappointed they left it out. But after thinking about it, I applaud the filmmakers for practicing a little restraint.

Agreed, otherwise it would be like the Death Star showing up in Return of the Jedi.

I think people need to realize that this is a movie adaptation. You have 2.5 hours to throw in as much as you can and still make it an enjoyable experience. I haven't read the book since it came out, and I'm glad I haven't, as it's good to go in fresh and enjoy what's there.

pinata242

07-16-09, 02:14 PM

See, that's a big problem now with the Malfoy's story though. What was the point to the vanishing chest, if the Death Eaters weren't going to raise hell at Hogwarts? They just show up and do nothing. Malfoy and Snape could have carried out the plot without the chest, and still likely have made it out of there since they all kinda just run out with zero resistance other than Harry.

That's a good point. I didn't like it in the book, personally, so I was ok with its omission in the movie. That said, if it was going to be changed so much, there was no need for their inclusion.

Supermallet

07-16-09, 02:14 PM

There was a lot more wrong with this movie but I do not even want to think about it right now. I am that disappointing by it. This should have been the best in the film series, and one of the best films of all time. Period. J.K. Rowling's novel really was that amazing.

Surely you jest. None of the Harry Potters are great literature. Of the seven, Goblet of Fire is the best written, but they all have their problems. Rowling came up with a good set of stories, but her writing is often dreadful. And out of all the books, Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince are perhaps the worst. The first two are simplistic, but at least they're short and have some fun aspects to them. Five and six are so long and bloated. Even with Dumbledore's death six felt anti-climactic.

Is the movie perfect? No. But I think you're highly overestimating the quality of the book when you make your comparisons.

GenPion

07-16-09, 04:12 PM

Surely you jest. None of the Harry Potters are great literature. Of the seven, Goblet of Fire is the best written, but they all have their problems. Rowling came up with a good set of stories, but her writing is often dreadful. And out of all the books, Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince are perhaps the worst. The first two are simplistic, but at least they're short and have some fun aspects to them. Five and six are so long and bloated. Even with Dumbledore's death six felt anti-climactic.

Is the movie perfect? No. But I think you're highly overestimating the quality of the book when you make your comparisons.

My opinion is what it is. My opinion. I love J.K. Rowling's writing and the sixth was my favorite and to me I felt it featured many of the most important thematic elements of the entire series, elements that were not on display here.

Anyway - on to the good news - Nicholas Hooper will not be returning to score Deathly Hollows. John Williams is poised to return!

As taken from Mugglenet:

According to JWFan.net, Nicholas Hooper will not return to score Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Hooper has composed the soundtracks for both Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince.

The post states that the films have put "too great a strain on his family life" and that he believes a "certain composer" [John Williams] should complete the series he started.

Supermallet

07-16-09, 04:16 PM

Uch, John Williams can kiss my ass. I'd almost rather see Chris Columbus return.

As for Rowling's writing, it's hilariously bad at times. She picks a word for each book and over uses it to the point where it becomes obnoxious. For example, in the first book, everyone is always turning a different shade of red. If they're embarrassed, happy, sad, sneezy, tired, anything, they turn some shade of red. In Half-Blood Prince, IIRC, everyone is always "beaming" at each other. I wonder if Rowling understands what the definition of the word "beaming" as it relates to facial expressions, because people generally only beam under the happiest of all circumstances. In Half-Blood Prince, everyone is busy beaming at each other you'd think they'd have to have a class just for jaw exercises.

Again, Rowling is not a bad story teller, but she's certainly not a great writer, and I can't imagine any Harry Potter movie becoming "one of the best movies of all time." But that's just my opinion.

asianxcore

07-16-09, 04:19 PM

Half-Blood Prince felt like nothing more than a long-winded, anti-climactic, somewhat scatter-brained set-up for the final movie(s).

Felt that way about Book 6 as well, though I know you mentioned you didn't read the books.

Though Book 6 had some great moments, I've always felt that it was written to mostly as filler to Book 7 (which I'm reading right now).

Anubis2005X

07-16-09, 04:37 PM

Pity, I rather liked Hooper's music, especially the score from HP5...

Goldberg74

07-16-09, 07:07 PM

I saw it this afternoon and was completely underwhelmed.

I give it 3 stars (or a C).

I hate that they reduced "The Half Blood Prince" part of the story to a measly three scenes and a stupidly "Luke-I'm-your-father"-like delivery of the revelation.

Sure I liked the movie... and the pacing was good, I just wish that they would have focused on a few different things.

... oh, and Jim Broadbent was fantastic as Slughorn.

tofu

07-16-09, 11:50 PM

Just saw it tonight and I thought it was good. The visual style and the music especially really set the tone for the movie. There was a lot missing from the book but whatever, if they tried to include everything, the movie would have been like 7 hours long.

Also, the acting seemed to be much much better than the previous films. I guess the kids took some classes in between the last movie and this one.

Patman

07-17-09, 12:31 AM

I found the 6th installment of the Harry Potter film franchise to be too reliant of the quick button-hook laughs as it went from scene to scene in the opening act, while trying to lay the foundation of the ominous plans of the dark prince, moving chess pieces in place, playing with the souls of characters in this battle of light and dark powered by magical machinations.

The film has many problems, as the main 3 characters (Harry, Hermione, and Ron) don't really have much to do beside provide comic relief scenes stemming from teeenage love triangle angst, and even the supporting Hogwarts characters have even less to do, which was too bad. The insertion of the new teacher at Hogwarts, Professor Slughorn, was too ham-fisted in light of his contribution to the overall plotline. The last 45 minutes were a chore to sit through because it was just flat-out boring. At 150+ minutes, the film was just too long given the plot points covered. The film short-changes the "Half-Blood Prince" angle too.

Daniel Radcliffe hasn't improved all that much in the acting department, which was disappointing, perhaps Director Yates just wasn't interested in getting a better acting performance from him. To me, it just leads to this meandering lacksadaisical energy to the film. Plus, he still plays Harry as the accidental wizard without as much confidence or conviction he should have at this point in the series. Now, not everything was poorly done, there are some nicely composed shots in the film, with some interesting lighting as the dark minions do what they do best, and Hogwarts early colorful palette from the previous film has been transitioned into a more muted color palette to bolster the simmering darkness a-brewing.

I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.

story

07-17-09, 01:14 AM

I haven't read any of the books and never will. I've seen all of the movies except Order of the Phoenix. I thought this was the funniest of the HP films and fairly enjoyable. There were a few manufactured "cute" moments that played to complete silence to a fairly-packed house and the ending felt rushed and it was obvious something was missing. Oh, and why don't wizards know a spell to put out a fire?!

Suprmallet what gives you the right to talk down John Williams what film scores did he burn you on!

List them if you would please.

Supermallet

07-17-09, 01:36 AM

What right do I have? It's called an opinion! :lol: Go check out some of the "best film composer" threads to see why I can't stand John Williams.

bunkaroo

07-17-09, 01:41 AM

Reading these other reviews, it seems like I may have liked the film precisely because I had last read the book over a year ago (or more). And I didn't like the last film because I saw it right after I read the book.

Simple solution: don't see the film right after you've read the book.

I haven't read the book since it came out and found the film sorely disappointing. Really wanted to like this one. Bottom of the list in terms of ranking.

And regarding having a bigger battle at the end, I'll use a different Star Wars analogy - lightsaber duels. You know you're getting one everytime. They all have their own unique flavor. Having a duel in AOTC in no way lessens the impact of the duel in ROTS. Helms Deep and Minas Tirith from LOTR are also good examples. Similar battles but
both were great and unique.

The same could be said for the HP films.

hardercore

07-17-09, 02:35 AM

Thought the cinematography in this film was fantastic, and was not surprised to learn having looked up IMDB afterwards that the same man shot Amelie.

The Bus

07-17-09, 08:26 AM

Actually, it is kind of sad that the biggest battle we got in the movie was Harry vs. Draco in a bathroom.

Anubis2005X

07-18-09, 03:15 AM

Actually, it is kind of sad that the biggest battle we got in the movie was Harry vs. Draco in a bathroom.

I thought the battle scenes at the Weasley's house and in the cave were pretty cool...

Quake1028

07-18-09, 11:45 AM

I gave it four stars. I don't think it's quite as good as Azkaban, Phoenix or Goblet, but it's really close. Lots of really funny parts too.

Quake1028

07-18-09, 12:02 PM

I also think that I benefited from reading the book right when it came, out, and forgetting a lot of stuff, because now that I go back and read this thread, I want to give it a lower rating for leaving some awesome stuff out :lol:.

Biggest plus: I thought that the movie captured the plot and themes of the book quite well. It is a long book and must have been difficult to abridge, in contrast to book 5. The awkward relationship stuff between Ron & Hermione and Harry & Ginny was crucial, IMHO.

Quibbles:
• I didn't like the yellowish color-timing (if that's what it was) and the generally washed-out look to the movie. The Scottish countryside around Hogwarts and the train, which we saw in several previous movies, wasn't as beautiful as before. Perhaps that was on purpose.
• The score was utterly unmemorable and disappointing.
• I would have liked to see the funeral from the book, although the ending they used worked well enough.
• I would have preferred a bit more explanation about why Snape was the "Half-blood Prince"; it was his mother's maiden name and his father was a muggle. It ties into his feelings for Lily Potter, the whole business about pure-bloods, half-bloods, and "mudbloods", and so forth. Not that any of that had to be explicitly stated.

I agree with those who believe that the filmmakers left out the Hogwarts battle sequence for reasons of time and the fact that there is another Battle of Hogwarts in Book 7.

lizard

07-18-09, 01:13 PM

...Lots of really funny parts too.Yes, there was a lot of laughter, in an almost completely full theater, when I saw it .

GenPion

07-18-09, 02:35 PM

Yes, there was a lot of laughter, in an almost completely full theater, when I saw it .

In contrast, I saw it in a full theater and there was some - but not many people - laughing during parts. Mostly, the entire audience was silent the entire film.

I was one of the only people that laughed during it and I didn't think the movie was a success overall. It was definitely a weird experience for me with the audience I had.

Sanjuro37

07-18-09, 03:38 PM

People actually thought the majority of the dialogue was funny? Except for Ron getting betwitched and Harry on the Luck potion, that shit was so flat. It's bad enough they placed so much focus on the rom-com aspect than the darkness of the first act (not to mention the general feel of the cinematography), but it might have worked to show how these kids were still kids if the dialogue was better. I thought the "That's what it feels like" line was superb, and I wanted more of that, not Watson and Radcliffe struggling with being funny and Grint trying to pick up the slack.

Still, it's made me split the series evenly down the line between films I enjoyed and films that bored me stiff. It's not as good as Prisoner or even Goblet, but it's damn sight better than the rest. 3 stars.

Drop

07-18-09, 04:09 PM

I thought everything that was supposed to be funny worked. Obviously some things were funnier than others, Harry using Felix Felicis and Ron on the Love potion being the best, but it all was well done.

I think that opening sequence with Harry really sets the tone well. You have the romantic aspect, a bit of humor, an ominous atmosphere and Dumbledore. That's the film right there.

mhg83

07-18-09, 10:43 PM

Just got back from the Omnimax showing:

This has to be one of the worse adaptations I've seen. There was so many good action and dramatic scenes that were in the book. Instead they decided to make it a Teen romance with magic! The only good parts were the opening, the bathroom battle scene, and the cave scene. Everything else was just done for cheap laughs. So sad that it turned out to be a bad movie. The book was really good and had potential to be the best Potter movie. I'm hoping the last two turn out well. But my anticipation has diminished greatly.

2 1/2 stars

NitroJMS

07-18-09, 11:41 PM

Finally got around to writing my review yesterday, which can be read here (http://www.cinamerica.com/?p=1038).

Just got back from a second viewing! Here is how I would rank the Harry Potter films.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/images/4.5.gif
1. Prisoner of Azkaban

:4star:
2. Half-Blood Prince

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/images/3.5.gif
3. Order of the Phoenix
4. Goblet of Fire

:3star:
5. Chamber of Secrets
6. Sorcerer's Stone

:D

Giantrobo

07-19-09, 03:47 AM

I just got back and I liked it. I've enjoyed the trip further down the dark road the last few films have taken. It's like, we're finally getting the meat of the matter. I also liked the fact that now the kids are older, we can stop bullshitin' with the crushes and show some hook ups. That said, by the next film I want graphic deaths, blood, and Wizard sex.

I LOOOVED Luna Loovegood(Evanna Lynch) and I think the audience loved her too. Whenever she was on there was some kind of audible reaction from the crowd, all positive. Not nearly enough of her, IMHO. The girl in love with Ron was pretty good too.

Shannon Nutt

07-19-09, 04:04 PM

I liked the movie quite a bit. I was actually happy a great deal of it was spent on drama instead of big action set pieces. My only real complaint was the whole Snape backstory was ignored, which really gave the character sympathy (something you don't pick up on in the movie unless you've read the novel). I have no issues with ditching the Hogwart's battle or the Dumbledore funeral.

I can see the argument that the movie is really just all set-up - it's not a complete story like most of the other movies. But then again, neither was the book.

N2DVD

07-19-09, 04:40 PM

We saw it Friday night in a packed house. Everyone is our group loved it, it was funny, sad and well done.

The biggest laugh came from the guy behind us when my wife practically jumped out of her chair and screamed during the cave sequence when the first "body" grabbed Harry's hand, LOL!

Son of Odin

07-19-09, 08:34 PM

Actually, it is kind of sad that the biggest battle we got in the movie was Harry vs. Draco in a bathroom.

i agree. when the end came, i was like, "where the hell is the big epic battle sequence". imo, it was too boring. it's like they made it for the twilight movie crowd with all the romance bs. everytime the movie started to pick up steam with the actual story, the romance crap would bring it to a screeching halt. nowhere near as good as OOTP, POA, and my favorite...GOF. i don't think yates has what it takes for the deathly hollows. dumbledore went out like a biatch, and harry hasn't got much better either. when wuss draco disarmed the professor, i almost left the theater.

Drop

07-19-09, 09:50 PM

Almost all of your complaints are related to Rowling's storytelling not Yates or Kloves.

Son of Odin

07-19-09, 10:08 PM

Almost all of your complaints are related to Rowling's storytelling not Yates or Kloves.

soooo, the half blood prince book was like twilight book then?
because i don't remember it being that sappy. it's up to the creative team and yates to tone down the stuff the we don't want to see and the stuff that slows down the movie. because, honestly, there was alot of sighing in the theater. that puppy love stuff got stale fast.

beavis69

07-19-09, 11:25 PM

I liked the movie quite a bit. I was actually happy a great deal of it was spent on drama instead of big action set pieces. My only real complaint was the whole Snape backstory was ignored, which really gave the character sympathy (something you don't pick up on in the movie unless you've read the novel). I have no issues with ditching the Hogwart's battle or the Dumbledore funeral.

I can see the argument that the movie is really just all set-up - it's not a complete story like most of the other movies. But then again, neither was the book.

Really? I thought the movie turned a very dramatic book into an action/lovefest. I didnt enjoy the movie. All of the emotion of the books is gone in the movies. This one wasn't quite as bad as Goblet of Fire, but just as disappointing. The Snape backstory completely slipped my mind and i now hate the movie all the more. People won't give a shit about the people that die in the last movie because if you haven't read the book you dont even realize who half the people are. I maintain this should of been done as a mini-series.

Solid Snake

07-19-09, 11:36 PM

Mini-series= less ppl and possibly less cash to make it with.

Films= Shit ton of cash thrown at it and hopefully they get the films right.

beavis69

07-19-09, 11:55 PM

Oh i get why they did it. Just saying it would be better

Tracer Bullet

07-20-09, 12:02 AM

It was okay.

What do you want, it's a Harry Potter movie. They're generally not very good as films. They're pictorals for people that have read the books.

asianxcore

07-20-09, 04:29 AM

soooo, the half blood prince book was like twilight book then?
because i don't remember it being that sappy. it's up to the creative team and yates to tone down the stuff the we don't want to see and the stuff that slows down the movie. because, honestly, there was alot of sighing in the theater. that puppy love stuff got stale fast.

Lots of that stuff in the 6th book. The Hermoine/Ron relationship and the Harry/Ginny relationship both get very obvious by that point in the series. Also Ron's relationship with Lavender Brown goes on longer in the book than it does in the movie.

Though not everyone will agree, I thought Book 6 was (obviously) mostly filler setup for the final book. Nothing really happens until the last 250 pages or so. Only so much the makers can pick from that book :)

I LOOOVED Luna Loovegood(Evanna Lynch) and I think the audience loved her too. Whenever she was on there was some kind of audible reaction from the crowd, all positive. Not nearly enough of her, IMHO

Agree with you 100% there. Luna is one of my favorite characters in the books and the Directors/Producers hit the casting dead on with with Evanna Lynch.

wlmowery

07-20-09, 09:59 AM

when wuss draco disarmed the professor, i almost left the theater.

Why? This is one thing from the ending that is straight from the book. Though handled a bit differently.

wlmowery

07-20-09, 10:02 AM

I saw it once this weekend at a Drive-in and will rewatch later this week. But I give is 4*s. They left out some key stuff, but there was plenty of the book's atmosphere to give Potter fans their due. I would have liked more pensieve scenes. Also, missed more of the backstory on the Prince at the end. Finally, I would have done the closing funeral scene to give the movie more of a traditional ending point.

Those concerns aside, I liked it. It is somewhat of a lull before the storm, which is how the book plays out for the most part too.

pinata242

07-20-09, 10:08 AM

Another benefit of the funeral scene would have been the image of a determined Harry walking away with a clear purpose and mission. That would have made me look forward to 7.1 even more.

Merkin Muffley

07-20-09, 10:09 AM

when wuss draco disarmed the professor, i almost left the theater.

There's a very good reason why they made a point of showing that.

Giles

07-20-09, 10:13 AM

It was okay.

What do you want, it's a Harry Potter movie. They're generally not very good as films. They're pictorals for people that have read the books.

I kind of agree, the last couple of films didn't wow me initially, but usually the subsequent viewings I've appreciated them more.

At a packed Uptown Theatre showing last Saturday, the audience really left in a funk, of the course the book is dark, but this one felt especiallly morbid.

Indy Jones Fan

07-20-09, 11:59 AM

A question for those who have read the book. Harry and Draco have a big fight in the bathroom, destroying most of it, and apparently Harry wounds Draco fairly badly yet neither is reprimanded for it??

lizard

07-20-09, 12:15 PM

soooo, the half blood prince book was like twilight book then?
because i don't remember it being that sappy. it's up to the creative team and yates to tone down the stuff the we don't want to see and the stuff that slows down the movie. because, honestly, there was alot of sighing in the theater. that puppy love stuff got stale fast."We"? You may not have wanted to see the sixteen year old budding romance stuff but I was looking forward to it. I had been rooting for Harry to notice Ginny since the second book/movie. The idea that a movie has to be all action all the time is a pretty puerile point of view IMHO. The Harry Potter books are, in large part, about the three main characters growing up....dumbledore went out like a biatch, and harry hasn't got much better either. when wuss draco disarmed the professor, i almost left the theater.You imply that you have read the book ("i don't remember it being that sappy") and you didn't figure out that Dumbledore was dying from the ring horcrux and from drinking the potion hiding the fake locket horcrux, and sacrificed himself? Really?

Giles

07-20-09, 12:58 PM

and you didn't figure out that Dumbledore was dying from the ring horcrux and from drinking the potion hiding the fake locket horcrux, and sacrificed himself? Really?

the movie didn't make much sense for me who hadn't read the book in that respect.

riley_dude

07-20-09, 01:13 PM

I thought it was good. Not great. A lot of characters stuff which I didn't mind but it did feel like it was a movie preparing for the last two chapters.

Kal-El

07-20-09, 01:33 PM

Why? This is one thing from the ending that is straight from the book. Though handled a bit differently.

Not to mention the actual turning point of the entire series, starting an unforeseen chain of events that eventually lead the inevitable downfall of Voldy.

orangecrush

07-20-09, 01:39 PM

A question for those who have read the book. Harry and Draco have a big fight in the bathroom, destroying most of it, and apparently Harry wounds Draco fairly badly yet neither is reprimanded for it??In the book Harry gets a detention every Saturday for the rest of the year with Snape.

Indy Jones Fan

07-20-09, 03:48 PM

In the book Harry gets a detention every Saturday for the rest of the year with Snape.
OK, that makes a little more sense. Draco seemed to almost be in critical condition. He appeared to be bleeding heavily until Snape fixed him up. I thought it was strange that nothing more was said about it.

the big train

07-20-09, 03:56 PM

the movie didn't make much sense for me who hadn't read the book in that respect.

Well, it isn't something that should be obvious because it's kind of critical that certain characters aren't aware of what was really happening.

I liked the movie. I have some little nitpicks, but not nearly as many as usual. I thought Gambon was improved in this movie over his previous performances. Where I felt he was too loopy in Azkaban and too violent/angry/frustrated in Goblet, he was better in Phoenix and greatly improved on that effort in this movie. My favorite little bit with him was the way he looked when Harry touched the ring.

I also thought Jessie Cave was great. Her rage in that last scene just cracked me up. She was better than the Lavender in the book, I dare say.

I have to say I was none too pleased with how they did that final scene. I mean, what the hell?! "Harry, you're too incompetent to find all those Horcuxes on your own. I must come with you for you to have any chance. Oh, yeah, I guess Ron's coming too."

Daytripper

07-20-09, 06:13 PM

I thought it was good. Not great.

Agree. While visually stunning like the rest, it's probably my least favorite "Potter" film. It just didn't have the punch the other films have. And the last 45 minutes just dragged on and on.

Baron Of Hell

07-21-09, 04:23 AM

I liked the movie for the most part but wouldn't have like it as much if I had just read the books. I'm not sure if some parts makes sense if you didn't read the book. For example would anyone know why they were hiding the halfblood prince's book if they hadn't read the book.

maxfisher

07-21-09, 07:34 AM

I saw it last night and really enjoyed it until the point where Dumbledore and Harry return to the school. I really disliked the changes at that point.
I know Yates said he thought it'd make the final films feel redundant, but there's just no reason to have the Deatheaters go to all the trouble of showing up, only to temporarily trash the dining hall. There needed to be a big confrontation.

Dumbledore's death was more poignant in the book. His sacrifice was much more apparent when he had the chance to use one spell and used it to freeze Harry rather than disarm Draco. I'd have to reread the book, but I also recall Dumbledore coming across as almost broken at the end, pleading with Snape to 'do it'. Enough so that there was much debate about whether he was helpless and begging for help or helpless and begging for Snape to kill him. And when everyone raised their lighters, errrr wands, at the end, I was halfway expecting Stairway to Heaven to come on.
Oh well. It could've been the best movie yet, but instead I'd probably rank it 4th, after Azkaban, Phoenix and Goblet. The end just really soured me on it.

Baron Of Hell

07-21-09, 10:07 AM

In the book Dumbledore knew about Draco's situation. I'm not sure if movie Dumbledore knew or not but book Dumbledore was pushing Snape to do what needed to be done to save Draco.

Matto1020

07-21-09, 10:24 AM

You guys need to reread that last chapter and rewatch the flick.

Aside from the obvious change, and a couple of missing lines of dialogue ("You're staling Draco, which is why I believe you don't have the heart to do it.") the scene is pretty much the same.

And as far as the person above who remembers Dumbledore pleading more... he says in the movie EXACTLY what he says in the book, "Snape.... please."

pinata242

07-21-09, 10:26 AM

And as far as the person above who remembers Dumbledore pleading more... he says in the movie EXACTLY what he says in the book, "<s>Snape</s>Severus.... please."

Nice job with the quote there ;)

maxfisher

07-21-09, 10:47 AM

You guys need to reread that last chapter and rewatch the flick.

Aside from the obvious change, and a couple of missing lines of dialogue ("You're staling Draco, which is why I believe you don't have the heart to do it.") the scene is pretty much the same.

And as far as the person above who remembers Dumbledore pleading more... he says in the movie EXACTLY what he says in the book, "Snape.... please."

I guess I got the pleading part from the fact that Harry says he sounded like he was pleading. Text from the book:

"We've got a problem, Snape," said the lumpy Amycus, whose eyes and wand were fixed alike upon Dumbledore, "the boy doesn't seem able-"

But somebody else had spoken Snape's name, quite softly.

"Severus..."

The sound frightened Harry beyond anything he had experienced all evening. For the first time, Dumbledore was pleading.

Snape said nothing, but walked forward and pushed Malfoy roughly out of the way. The three Death Eaters fell back without a word. Even the werewold seemed to cowed.

Snape gazed for a moment at Dumbledore, and there was a revulasion and hatred etched in the harsh lines of his face.

"Severus...please..."

Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore.

"Avada Kedavra!"

A jet of green light shot from the end of Snape's wand and hit Dumbledore squarely in the chest.

Dumbledore comes off as being beat and, in the context of the book, it read as if he was pleading with Snape to save him and then was betrayed. I'll have to see the movie again, but the scene just felt significantly different in regards to Dumbledore's disposition right before he died. Regardless, the end definitely felt rushed considering how much time the film spent on other, less vital aspects of the book.

Drop

07-21-09, 12:41 PM

I don't think Dumbledore's reaction was a wrong choice for the film, just different. The scene was interpreted through Kloves, Yates, and finally Gambon. They can do as they wish with the scene because it doesn't rewrite anything in the book. The implication for the audience is still that Dumbledore wanted Snape to do something, for a first time viewer it seems to be a plea to save his life one way or another. A plea doesn't have to have a certain tone. I do think the word choice is very important though: "Severus...Please".

In the book, it took me a little thinking it over, but I never felt quite right about the scene. The way it was written doesn't indicate anything exact and that made me highly suspicious of Snape and Dumbledore's motives. Not to mention Snape's actions as he escaped only further fueled any doubts. If I remember correctly it felt like immediately after the book release some people came to the conclusion that Snape was told by Dumbledore to kill him if need be to maintain is double agent status and save Draco. I know that I believed that theory and was happy to see it confirmed in the final book.

CertifiedTHX

07-22-09, 08:32 PM

(MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD)

I would have preferred a slightly more organic start to the Harry/Ginny relationship. She was taking a bigger interest in him in Order of the Phoenix, but he had as yet shown none in her. Then he's plunked down at the Burrow, looks up at Ginny's window, and a smile flashes across his face, coupled with a meaningful embrace when they meet inside. Yates seemed to be forcing the issue, because Harry was supposed to fall in love with her, rather than simply allowing his feelings to develop throughout the film.

How many times did Draco have to uncover the Vanishing Cabinet? Wouldn't once have been enough? A little redundant.

The attack on the Burrow was pointless. Added nothing relevant, not even much tension. And why did no one think to yell "Aquamenti"? Seven wizards just stand there, watching the Burrow burn. (Might have worked better as a replacement for the Bill and Fleur wedding in Deathly Hallows-- a reason for Harry, Ron, and Hermione to escape. All bets are off at that point; anyone could be seriously injured, even killed.)

The cave scene was rushed at a couple points: Dumbledore deduces immediately that blood must be given at the entrance. What about a moment of consideration first, to determine how one might enter? Perhaps a shot of his hand feeling the wall, "reading" the magical fingerprint, before he announces to Harry that payment must be made.

And, again, at the basin in the middle of the lake, Dumbledore touches the potion, finds it shielded, and tells Harry that it must be drunk. We're jumping to conclusions pretty quickly here. Stretch it out a bit, allow for a little analysis.

As with all the films since Chamber of Secrets, there are many little things I would have done differently, along with a few big things. But none of this is to say I didn't like Half-Blood Prince. I love all the films. That is to say, I love the world J.K. Rowling created, and I love seeing the cinematic adaptation of it.

The problem is, I find the films nearly impossible to watch without thinking of the books, and noticing the parts that have been severely truncated or cut altogether, parts that have significant impact on the story. As an unfortunate result, the films fall short to varying degrees, and never feel as coherent and complete as I know they could.

--THX

Draven

07-22-09, 08:44 PM

I don't think Dumbledore's reaction was a wrong choice for the film, just different. The scene was interpreted through Kloves, Yates, and finally Gambon. They can do as they wish with the scene because it doesn't rewrite anything in the book. The implication for the audience is still that Dumbledore wanted Snape to do something, for a first time viewer it seems to be a plea to save his life one way or another. A plea doesn't have to have a certain tone. I do think the word choice is very important though: "Severus...Please".

In the book, it took me a little thinking it over, but I never felt quite right about the scene. The way it was written doesn't indicate anything exact and that made me highly suspicious of Snape and Dumbledore's motives. Not to mention Snape's actions as he escaped only further fueled any doubts. If I remember correctly it felt like immediately after the book release some people came to the conclusion that Snape was told by Dumbledore to kill him if need be to maintain is double agent status and save Draco. I know that I believed that theory and was happy to see it confirmed in the final book.

I remember the discussion, but to me it was crystal clear that was what happened. It was just Harry, too blinded by rage, who couldn't see it.

There was no way JK Rowling was going to spend the amount of time on Snape that she did, with his hidden agendas and his behind-the-scenes support of Harry and then just have him be an assassin. I'm surprised anyone thought otherwise.

lizard

07-24-09, 02:21 PM

...As with all the films since Chamber of Secrets, there are many little things I would have done differently, along with a few big things. But none of this is to say I didn't like Half-Blood Prince. I love all the films. That is to say, I love the world J.K. Rowling created, and I love seeing the cinematic adaptation of it.

The problem is, I find the films nearly impossible to watch without thinking of the books, and noticing the parts that have been severely truncated or cut altogether, parts that have significant impact on the story. As an unfortunate result, the films fall short to varying degrees, and never feel as coherent and complete as I know they could.

--THXI agree. I'll give an example from Prisoner of Azkaban, because it is cited by many as their favorite movie of the series thus far:

The origin of the Marauders Map is never explained.
The title of the map is given:

Messers. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
are proud to present
The Marauder's Map

But who “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs” are is not included in the movie.

For those who don’t plan to read the book and would like to know more: Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew), Padfoot (Sirius Black) and Prongs (James Potter) became animagi to help out their friend Moony (Remus Lupin), a werewolf, during his full moon transformation. Lupin couldn't harm them when they were transformed. How hard would it have been to include Lupin's explanation of this in the Shrieking Shack?

Yes, it is a little thing, but it would have been nice to have this in the movie.

arminius

07-24-09, 03:18 PM

I agree. I'll give an example from Prisoner of Azkaban, because it is cited by many as their favorite movie of the series thus far:

The origin of the Marauders Map is never explained.
The title of the map is given:

Messers. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
are proud to present
The Marauder's Map

But who “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs” are is not included in the movie.

For those who don’t plan to read the book and would like to know more: Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew), Padfoot (Sirius Black) and Prongs (James Potter) became animagi to help out their friend Moony (Remus Lupin), a werewolf, during his full moon transformation. Lupin couldn't harm them when they were transformed. How hard would it have been to include Lupin's explanation of this in the Shrieking Shack?

Yes, it is a little thing, but it would have been nice to have this in the movie.
Agree totally. There was just no reason not to include that in the movie.

discostu1337

07-26-09, 09:33 PM

Ok, we finally went and saw this today and I thought it was super boring. We had watched OotP recently to refresh ourselves and that movie simply destroys the new one. HBP had almost no plot, no conflict, no final confrontation...nothing that makes a story a story. I'm no Potter fanboy, but I would appreciate a story when seeing a film :) I see it as a 3hr filler of useless scenes until the final book (films) comes out.

RD1973

07-26-09, 10:47 PM

I just finished watching Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I've never read the books, but I've seen all the movies. Honestly, this franchise has been kind of meh to me. However, Prisoner of Azkaban and this one stand out as the most entertaining.

It just seemed like every movie started the same, then some crazy shit happened, a minor character was killed, Voldemort stayed mostly hidden, and then everything was fixed (temporarily) by the end.

Maybe its because this movie is building to the final battle between Harry and Voldemort, but I was really invested this time. And I'm definitely excited about the last two.

Just one question: What's the significance of the Half-Blood Prince? I checked back through this thread, but didn't find an answer.

pinata242

07-26-09, 11:17 PM

There was no significance in the movie to the Half-Blood Prince mystery. They only serviced that thread as minimally as possible because that was the title of the book.

GatorDeb

07-26-09, 11:18 PM

I really enjoyed it. HAS to be nominated for FX.

Half-Blood Prince:
Snape had one Muggle parent and one magical parent. He was always courting Lily Potter (Harry's mom). Can't remember clearly what happens but he uses the insult Mudblood and Lily writes him off forever and goes off with James Potter (Harry's dad). Also Snape's Muggle last name is Prince, hence Half-Blood Prince.

RD1973

07-27-09, 01:10 AM

I really enjoyed it. HAS to be nominated for FX.

Half-Blood Prince:
Snape had one Muggle parent and one magical parent. He was always courting Lily Potter (Harry's mom). Can't remember clearly what happens but he uses the insult Mudblood and Lily writes him off forever and goes off with James Potter (Harry's dad). Also Snape's Muggle last name is Prince, hence Half-Blood Prince.

Thanks for clearing that up. I can't believe they didn't throw that bit of information in the movie somewhere.

I guess I miss alot of things in these movies because I haven't read the books and I'm just a casual fan. But these movies have become my new Star Trek. I used to love watching those movies (whether they were good or bad) because it was like visiting old friends.

pinata242

07-27-09, 01:15 AM

^ See, it's stuff like that that is going to make movies 7a & 7b extra confusing to people that have only seen the movies. They're going to put in so much more in them to stick to the books better, only to tie up plots that were never fully introduced in movies 3-6.

I mean, will Snape's patronus make any sense at all? They've never once touched on his unrequited love for Lily, that I remember. I remember they cast young Snape and young Messers M, W, P, and P but I can't remember there being a scene in OotP with them or Lily. May have been too long since I've seen it, so I might be jumping to conclusions here.

Giantrobo

07-27-09, 01:36 AM

Thanks for clearing that up. I can't believe they didn't throw that bit of information in the movie somewhere.

I guess I miss alot of things in these movies because I haven't read the books and I'm just a casual fan. But these movies have become my new Star Trek. I used to love watching those movies (whether they were good or bad) because it was like visiting old friends.

I just Wiki anything I need to know about the Harry Potter books since it's all spelled out. That's how I knew about Snape and the Half Blood Prince thing.

Labor

07-27-09, 04:28 AM

This was finally the movie to convince me to read the books I think...

They might as well have changed the name of the movie, because the whole Half Blood Prince aspect was nothing more than an afterthought.

To people who have read the book, is Harrys out of nowhere attraction to Rons sister done any better in the books?

Disneyboy

07-27-09, 10:28 AM

This was finally the movie to convince me to read the books I think...

They might as well have changed the name of the movie, because the whole Half Blood Prince aspect was nothing more than an afterthought.

To people who have read the book, is Harrys out of nowhere attraction to Rons sister done any better in the books?

It still comes out of nowhere, but it also hits him sudennly when he sees her kissing her boyfriend. I think it was done better in the book because at least in the book there was that catalyst moment to start it off.

lizard

07-27-09, 10:36 AM

I really enjoyed it. HAS to be nominated for FX.

Half-Blood Prince:
Snape had one Muggle parent and one magical parent. He was always courting Lily Potter (Harry's mom). Can't remember clearly what happens but he uses the insult Mudblood and Lily writes him off forever and goes off with James Potter (Harry's dad). Also Snape's Muggle last name is Prince, hence Half-Blood Prince.Close. Snape's mother's name was Prince and his father was a muggle. So, he's a "half-blood" in terms of being magic born and the Prince side of his family is the magical side. And, yes, Lily Evans Potter was muggle born (like Hermione).

This stuff has to do with the prejudice among some in the magical world, especially Slytherins, against those from muggle backgrounds. Few people, other than Dumbledore, are aware that even Voldemort is half-muggle. And Snape is conflicted. He is a half-blood himself and is infatuated with neighbor Lily Evans, a "mudblood" (and sister to Petunia Dursley BTW). This story is explained in the seventh book, as those who have read it are aware. How they will handle it in the coming movies remains to be seen.

stp115

07-27-09, 10:37 AM

Thanks for clearing that up. I can't believe they didn't throw that bit of information in the movie somewhere.

They did. Near the end when Harry goes after Snape, and Snape told Harry, "You don't think I'd recognize my own spells?" and Harry asks him if he was the half blood prince.

I saw it this weekend. I thought it was pretty well done. I'd give it 9 out of 10. By no means perfect, but it didn't feel like as long as it was, and entertained the whole time.

CertifiedTHX

07-27-09, 04:56 PM

The origin of the Marauders Map is never explained.
The title of the map is given:

Messers. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
are proud to present
The Marauder's Map

But who “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs” are is not included in the movie.

Funny, something about this suddenly dawned on me the other day. In the film version of Order of the Phoenix, when Umbridge had Harry at the end of her wand, threatening him with the Cruciatus Curse, Harry cried to Snape, "He's got Padfoot! He's got Padfoot in the place where it's hidden!"

If your information came only from watching the films, you wouldn't know who Padfoot was, other than he was one of the creators of the Marauder's Map. Harry's vision of Sirius in the hands of Voldemort had just flashed across his mind, yes, but the films had never made the connection between Sirius and Padfoot.

Very poor development. If you're going to use a plot point, establish it first. Otherwise you're throwing things together with no glue.

--THX

NitroJMS

07-27-09, 06:40 PM

I agree. I'll give an example from Prisoner of Azkaban, because it is cited by many as their favorite movie of the series thus far:

The origin of the Marauders Map is never explained.
The title of the map is given:

Messers. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
are proud to present
The Marauder's Map

But who “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs” are is not included in the movie.

For those who don’t plan to read the book and would like to know more: Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew), Padfoot (Sirius Black) and Prongs (James Potter) became animagi to help out their friend Moony (Remus Lupin), a werewolf, during his full moon transformation. Lupin couldn't harm them when they were transformed. How hard would it have been to include Lupin's explanation of this in the Shrieking Shack?

Yes, it is a little thing, but it would have been nice to have this in the movie.

I rewatched years three to five over the past few days, and there is a reference in The Prisoner of Azkaban about who the map belongs to which never really dawned on me before. Towards the end, Lupin is shown with the map on his desk and states "mischief managed" to close the map, thus showing he is one of the four.

For movie watchers only, you kind of have to deduce by elimination who each of the four are though. Voldemort calls Pettigrew by his Wormtail name in Goblet of Fire. Harry's patronus is a stag, thus the Prongs name for his father. Moony is obviously Lupin, a werewolf. Thus leaving Sirius as Padfoot.

Still would have been much easier to have a single line of dialogue, especially in a film series known for its long exposition, but it is in there if you look hard enough.

mwbmis

07-28-09, 12:22 AM

This was finally the movie to convince me to read the books I think...

They might as well have changed the name of the movie, because the whole Half Blood Prince aspect was nothing more than an afterthought.

To people who have read the book, is Harrys out of nowhere attraction to Rons sister done any better in the books?

It's not really out of nowhere in the books. In the first four books, Ginny is too embarrassed to be herself around Harry, but it is demonstrated on several occasions that she and Harry have the same type of sense of humor. There are also the stereotypical storybook archetypes (she chases after the train in book 1...he saves her from the monster in book 2).

In the fifth book, I thought it was became really obvious that was the direction Rowling was going to go. The seeds of Harry actually falling for Ginny are planted in that book, but Harry the character is too oblivious to recognize them for what they are. Harry is very angry for most of OOTP, and Ginny really is the only character consistently capable of both not taking his crap and talking him down (her two major book scenes didn't make the movie). Also, the OOTP book pretty much does a compare and contrast between Ginny and Cho every step of the way.

In book six, Harry spends a lot of time around Ginny at the Burrow before they go back to school, and their connection grows though he still doesn't fully recognize it for what it is until he and Ron come across Ginny and Dean snogging in a passage way.

Ginny and Dean don't break up until invisibility cloak Harry accidently bumps into her after he drinks the lucky potion. She thinks it's Dean trying to help her through the portrait whole again, and it starts a fight in which they break up....the lucky potion accomplished more in the book. They end up getting together after the Sectumsempra scene. Harry is assigned detention with Snape and has to miss the final Quidditch game. Ginny has to play seeker as his replacement and beats Cho to the snitch and wins the Quidditch cup (she does that in book five as well).

After his detention is over Harry walks into the Gryffindor common room to find out that they won (they had to win really big and they did). Ginny jumps into his arms, and totally on impulse he kisses her. They're romantically together for the remainder of the book until he puts the relationship aside at the end to try to protect her.

Baron Of Hell

07-28-09, 12:18 PM

I hate that they have to take out so much information that is in the book for the movie. It ruins it for me. I liked these movies so much more before I read the books.

This is why I didn't bother rereading the books instead opted to just watch the movies again. I liked them a lot more now that the exact details of the book are out of my head. I liked the movie well enough but I would have hated it if I had just read the book. I can understand why they made some changes. They didn't want to make a 3 hour movie, though I would have love that myself.

pinata242

07-28-09, 12:20 PM

First two parts of Harry Porter were much more better, maybe its because of difference in books or maybe all of them are tired of it

The first two movies were practically word-for-word adaptations of the books. They didn't leave anything out. To a fault, imo.

Brent L

07-28-09, 05:25 PM

Alright, I didn't much care for this movie.

I've never read any of the books, I've really enjoyed all of the past HP films, and for some reason I just didn't care for this one. There was almost no action and "battle" scenes, the entire love story deal seemed far too trite, it was incredibly slow moving for the vast majority of the picture, and the payoffs throughout the flick were way too anticlimactic. I went with my cousin, and he fell asleep for minutes at a time, and I nodded off a time or two myself.

This felt less like a film and more like a bridge produced solely to get us to the next two flicks leading to the end of the series. Perhaps that was the point, and if I followed the books I'd "get" that, but I view these flicks only as a theatrical viewer, and as a film I just didn't care for this one much at all.

It looked and sounded great, I'll give it that, and there were a few bright moments, but they were way too seldom. Did I mention that this film just went on and on? It almost felt more like a special to prepare you for the next two films, and I just didn't go in expecting something like that. Just about all of the good bits, if not all of them (other than the very ending of course), are in the trailer. I can see why that is of course, since there's not too much going on in the film to put in a trailer in the first place.

Don't flame me for this, I'm just being honest. Heck, maybe my view will change if I watch it again down the road sometime. :lol:

lizard

07-29-09, 06:20 PM

It's not really out of nowhere in the books. In the first four books, Ginny is too embarrassed to be herself around Harry, but it is demonstrated on several occasions that she and Harry have the same type of sense of humor. There are also the stereotypical storybook archetypes (she chases after the train in book 1...he saves her from the monster in book 2).Plus my favorite scene from any of the six movies thus far: In Chamber of Secrets, Harry arrives at the Burrow — in the enchanted car — and is at the breakfast table when Ginny turns the corner, sees him with surprise, wide-eyed, and runs back upstairs. Ron explains that Ginny has been talking about Harry all summer and that it was a "bit annoying, really". At that point it was clear that Ginny had an infatuation with Harry.In the fifth book, I thought it was became really obvious that was the direction Rowling was going to go. The seeds of Harry actually falling for Ginny are planted in that book, but Harry the character is too oblivious to recognize them for what they are. Harry is very angry for most of OOTP, and Ginny really is the only character consistently capable of both not taking his crap and talking him down (her two major book scenes didn't make the movie). Also, the OOTP book pretty much does a compare and contrast between Ginny and Cho every step of the way.

In book six, Harry spends a lot of time around Ginny at the Burrow before they go back to school, and their connection grows though he still doesn't fully recognize it for what it is until he and Ron come across Ginny and Dean snogging in a passage way.

Ginny and Dean don't break up until invisibility cloak Harry accidently bumps into her after he drinks the lucky potion. She thinks it's Dean trying to help her through the portrait whole again, and it starts a fight in which they break up....the lucky potion accomplished more in the book. They end up getting together after the Sectumsempra scene. Harry is assigned detention with Snape and has to miss the final Quidditch game. Ginny has to play seeker as his replacement and beats Cho to the snitch and wins the Quidditch cup (she does that in book five as well).

After his detention is over Harry walks into the Gryffindor common room to find out that they won (they had to win really big and they did). Ginny jumps into his arms, and totally on impulse he kisses her. They're romantically together for the remainder of the book until he puts the relationship aside at the end to try to protect her.Excellent summary.

Lara Means

07-30-09, 04:48 AM

Where are the IMAX 3D reviews?

mdc3000

07-30-09, 08:54 AM

^I saw it yesterday and the IMAX was great, but the 3D was a waste of time/effort. The first 12 minutes of the film have been remastered for 3D and while there are a few cool shots, nothing about any of that 3D footage is very dazzling/eye popping (the 3D trailer for 'A Christmas Carol' beforehand outdid Potter tenfold). It's an odd choice because apart from the opening action sequence with the bridge, the rest of the 3D footage isn't very exciting (Harry at the diner, meeting Slughorn).

I appreciated that it wasn't like Superman Returns where you're constantly putting the glasses on/off/on/off but if they could have made the Quidditch match or the retrieval of the Horcrux scene 3D, I think that would have been more effective.The film looked and sounded great in IMAX though and is easily the best way to see it (but I'm a big IMAX fan anyhow - the DMR presentations always have more detail and better colour reproduction IMO). Now I've got to check this out in D-Box...

CertifiedTHX

07-30-09, 04:10 PM

The first two movies were practically word-for-word adaptations of the books. They didn't leave anything out. To a fault, imo.

Out of curiosity-- and this goes to anyone who thought the first two films should have been tighter-- how would you have changed Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets to make them better? What would you have cut? Or rearranged? Or maybe even added?

--THX

GenPion

07-30-09, 06:35 PM

Alright, I didn't much care for this movie.

I've never read any of the books, I've really enjoyed all of the past HP films, and for some reason I just didn't care for this one. There was almost no action and "battle" scenes, the entire love story deal seemed far too trite, it was incredibly slow moving for the vast majority of the picture, and the payoffs throughout the flick were way too anticlimactic. I went with my cousin, and he fell asleep for minutes at a time, and I nodded off a time or two myself.

This felt less like a film and more like a bridge produced solely to get us to the next two flicks leading to the end of the series. Perhaps that was the point, and if I followed the books I'd "get" that, but I view these flicks only as a theatrical viewer, and as a film I just didn't care for this one much at all.

It looked and sounded great, I'll give it that, and there were a few bright moments, but they were way too seldom. Did I mention that this film just went on and on? It almost felt more like a special to prepare you for the next two films, and I just didn't go in expecting something like that. Just about all of the good bits, if not all of them (other than the very ending of course), are in the trailer. I can see why that is of course, since there's not too much going on in the film to put in a trailer in the first place.

Don't flame me for this, I'm just being honest. Heck, maybe my view will change if I watch it again down the road sometime. :lol:

Read the books. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was my favorite book in the series, but your reaction to this film doesn't suprise me at all. I felt the same way about it.

mraw

08-01-09, 10:33 PM

Where are the IMAX 3D reviews?

I saw the movie in IMAX '3D' today and I was pretty underwhelmed by it. Only the first 10-20 minutes are in 3D, then they flash the symbol at the bottom of the screen for you to take off your 3D glasses, and the rest of the movie is in 2D. I probably would've enjoyed it much better had I gone in not expecting it to be 3D in its entirety. I think they would come off better advertising it as an IMAX film and the few 3D elements at the beginning can be an unexpected treat. I saw it on a true IMAX screen and had to drive approximately 40 miles from home to see this movie.

Superman07

08-02-09, 10:13 PM

It's the third best film of the series, behind Azkaban and Phoenix.

I think I have settled on that too. I finally caught this on a morning show today and was pleasantly surprised. I had heard that those who really enjoyed the book were disappointed since it strayed so much. However, it's been so long since I read the book I didn't really know how to take that comment. Not only did I enjoy it, but it brought back my enjoyment of the series. The last film I really didn't enjoy and I found that odd since I liked all of the others.

My only minor complaints are:

1) There was no huge showdown in the castle. I recall reading through that chapter and thinking, "This is going to be great on screen!". It didn't happen. :(

2) The ending felt rushed. Not super bad, it could have used an extra 5 minutes I think.

All in all I felt it was very good, but I think I still put it behind Azkaban and Phoenix since those felt the most enveloping.

I'd really love to see directors cuts of these one day, but unfortunately I have a feeling there is not a lot of extra footage, nor was that ever the intent.

mraw

08-05-09, 12:45 AM

Now the commercial for the movie says "be sure to experience the explosive opening sequence in IMAX 3D". They probably received all kinds of complaints about that movie. I was going to complain, but the line for the box office was from here to forever when I left the theater.

Steve Phillips

08-18-09, 01:43 PM

I wasn't impressed with the IMAX 3-D opening either. It was no big deal, and far less impressively converted than the climax of the last one. It seemed a bit out of place in this instance, and I'm a big fan of 3-D. I'd say anyone who saw it flat only didn't miss much.

B.A.

08-24-09, 02:47 PM

My brother-in-law and I took my niece to see this yesterday. She liked it a lot. It was good, but I was underwhelmed quite a bit. *** out of five. I have never read the books and I felt like the movie was missing quite a lot in parts - and they spent too much time on certain romantic subplots. I really wish I would have refreshed my memory by watching Order of the Phoenix again as I haven't seen it since it was released theatrically and certain plot points were fuzzy.

Likes:

The casting of Jim Broadbent.
The returns, albeit brief, of Luna and Beatrix.
Michael Gambon and Alan Rickman, as always.
Harry and Ginny's burgeoning romance.
The limited screen-time given to the Weasley twins.

Dislikes:

It was too long and slow at times - I fell asleep at least once.
Lavender and the dude chasing after Hermione were a waste of time.
The lack of back-story on the Half-Blood Prince.
Harry's lack of presence or fortitude - he seemed to be more of a badass in the previous two or three films.
The limited inter-action w/ the supporting cast at school.
The limited inter-action w/ the Order of the Phoenix - this really annoyed me.

Daytripper

09-30-09, 08:24 PM

"The Half Blood Prince" just crossed the 300M mark in the U.S. First HP movie to do so since the first. Before inflation that is.

Boba Fett

11-11-09, 06:16 PM

Coming late to the party on this one, but I finally got around to seeing it yesterday.

It didn't set that well with me. I'd give it a 3/5.

I did feel the same way about Order of the Phoenix, but when I revisited it on DVD, I found I liked it a little better.

I'd rank the films from favorite on down as follows:

Prisoner of Azkaban
Goblet of Fire
Chamber of Secrets
Order of the Phoenix
Half Blood Prince
Philosopher's Stone

pinata242

11-11-09, 07:22 PM

Location: Pacific NW
Pretention alert! ;)
Philosopher's Stone

Boba Fett

11-11-09, 09:09 PM

Pretention alert! ;)
Ha.

I honestly wrote Philosopher because I couldn't remember off hand how to spell Sorcerer (which I just had to look up.)